The outgoing Election Commission (EC) is poised to end its tenure amid controversy. Some quarters alleged that the commission had failed to exercise its constitutional power to hold elections fairly, with the result that widespread poll-related violence erupted during different elections, including the 10th parliamentary polls in 2014.
Different political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jatiya Party (JP), accused the commission of being an “incompetent and spineless body”, alleging that fair elections could not be expected from it. But the EC refuted such allegations, replying that such incidents were isolated and violence in elections was part of a long culture in the country. It also observed that such violence occurred because of a deficit of trust on the part of the candidates in voters.
On May 13, 2012, one of the election commissioners, Mohammad Abu Hafiz, at a workshop in Rajshahi, said: “People’s trust can be achieved and democracy would gain ground if people understand that the EC is transparent and impartial. Our goal is to take the commission on that path.”
Yet, at the end of its tenure, the question of “people’s trust” remained embroiled in controversy.  Keeping aside the controversy over elections, however, the commission got the opportunity to undertake some major work, such as updating the voter list, distributing smart national identity cards, making the people of the defunct enclaves voters and giving them smart cards, submitting nomination papers through an online

system and shifting its office to the new building.
This EC consisted of five commissioners, including chief election commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad. It was appointed by the then president, Zillur Rahman, through a search committee, and reconstituted on February 8, 2012. It completes its tenure on February 8 this year.
EC sources said since 2012, the outgoing commission held at least 7,409 elections, including the parliamentary polls, President’s election, by-elections, elections in reserved seats, city corporation polls, and zila parishad, upazila parishad, union parishad and municipality polls.
During the tenure of the outgoing commission, the 10th parliamentary poll invited much criticism, both at home and abroad, against the backdrop of its performance, with the country witnessing an unprecedented number of candidates who won unopposed. Also, violent clashes erupted, with dozens of lives and large amounts of properties being lost.
The major political parties—including the BNP—did not participate in the 10th Parliament. Only seven political parties, including the Awami League (AL) and the JP participated, while the remaining 33 registered parties stayed away from the elections.
The BNP-led 18-Party Alliance kept on harping on its demand to hold the elections under a neutral, non-partisan administration.
On November 22, 2013, the Opposition alliance had threatened to cripple the country if the electoral schedule was announced without taking measures to arrange the next parliamentary polls under a non-party government. Nevertheless, the commission announced the 10th parliamentary polls on November 25, 2013, setting the date of the elections on January 5, 2014.
In a televised address to the nation, the CEC said: “I hope all political parties would come forward to fulfil people’s expectations, so that people can see the reflection of their mandate in a fair, peaceful and neutral election, to be held following a political compromise.”
He urged the voters to cast their votes without intimidation, adding that he would do whatever was necessary. Yet, the election was marred by massive violence, arrests and killings of at least 21 persons on the election day as well as a boycott by the Opposition.
The election was held in 147 seats out of 300 because candidates to 153 seats were elected unopposed—a record of unopposed elected members in the history of Bangladesh.
The CEC hoped that the 10th parliamentary polls would be held in a festive mood, but, unfortunately, the commission was tainted instead with the stigma of bloodshed. Different quarters blamed the commission for its failure to peacefully hold the 10th parliamentary polls.
The EC’s performance in holding elections drew another massive volley of criticism when the fourth upazila parishad polls were held in six phases starting from 19 February, 2014, because these elections witnessed the killings of more than 100. The EC’s “weak role” in curbing the irregularities in the elections also drew flak.
After completion of the upazila polls, the CEC said that the EC had tried its best to hold the polls, but he was reluctant to assume any responsibility for the losses of lives and properties.
Boycotts of polls comprised another striking phenomenon during the tenure of the outgoing commission. These started from the 10th parliamentary polls and continued to other local body elections—the major Opposition and other smaller parties could not repose trust in the commission and expect it to hold fair polls. As a result, the ruling, AL-backed candidates won the majority of the seats in the local body polls without any resistance from other quarters.
Like the upazila parishad, union parishad and municipality polls, the local body elections were held under political symbols for the first time.
As the major Opposition parities—including the BNP—did not field candidates in most of these local body polls, the intra-party conflicts acquired different dimensions as many rebel candidates from the AL participated in the polls, resulting in vote rigging and violence, but the commission was helpless to curb these.
The EC held the polls in 234 municipalities under political symbols for the first time on 30 December 2015, but only 20 political party candidates out of 40 took part in the elections. Vote rigging, violence, boycotts and killings of several persons marked the polls.
A key ally of the AL-led Grand Alliance government, the Jatiya Party, alleged that the municipality elections were not fair by any yardstick.
The CEC also said the municipality polls were held in a peaceful manner, barring some stray incidents here and there. When he was asked to rate his satisfaction as far as the polls were concerned, he said, “You’ll evaluate it. It’s our duty and we’re just doing our job.”
Different political parties, except the AL, raised questions about the “capacity” of the commission to hold the polls. The BNP said the municipality poll was a “farcical election”, but the AL urged candidates to accept the poll results.
Another set of sanguinary elections was the union parishad (UP) polls, which were held under political banners for the first time in 4,104 unions out of 4,555 in six phases. These polls started in February and ended in June 5, 2016.
The elections in six phases robbed at least 126 of their lives. Of them, 40 were killed on the six voting days and the rest in pre-and post-poll violence. After the completion of the UP polls, the CEC blamed social instability and the rigid stances of UP poll candidates for the election-related violence.
Instead of talking about the electoral system’s faults, the CEC said: “Unrest is witnessed at every layer of our society and this is one of the major causes for the poll violence. We have to bring about a change in our social concept.”
Even law minister Anisul Huq, in Parliament on June 13 last year, held rebel candidates responsible for the deadly violence during UP polls.   
After assuming charge in 2012, the CEC repeatedly said: “The commission’s work is to hold free, fair and impartial polls. The EC will make all arrangements in this respect.”
But different quarters repeatedly complained that the commission could not fulfil the goal in reality and had lost its credibility.